A significant mountain on the eastern coast of the Balkan Peninsula.
Mount Ossa is located in Larissa in Thessaly. Rising 6,490 feet (1,978 meters) above the surrounding plain, Ossa has always been a landmark for sailors and overland travelers.
According to the geographer Strabo, the area between Mount Ossa and Mount Olympos (Olympus) was a marshy plain until an earthquake opened a path to the sea. The various streams that once supplied the marshes condensed into the Peneios (Peneius) River and flowed freely across the plain into the Aigean (Aegean) Sea.
Odysseus encountered numerous "shades" at the entrance to the Underworld including Iphimedeia, wife of Aloeus. She had two sons by the god of the sea, Poseidon—Otus and Ephialtes.
Second only to Orion, Otus and Ephialtes were among the tallest and most handsome men on earth. In their arrogance, they planned to assault the gods on Mount Olympos by piling Mount Pelion on top of Mount Ossa thereby reaching the peaks of Mount Olympos. They were prevented from achieving this when Apollon, son of Zeus and Leto, killed them before they matured into adulthood.
Latitude North, Longitude East
39.8071, 22.6863
| References: Homer, Odyssey book 11, line 315 Strabo, Geography book 9.5.2 |